What we heard: occasionally even the thinnest of rumors spark massive interest. Take the case of an allegedly leaked image on MMOGameSite purporting for getting of Blizzard’s discharge schedule for the subsequent 4 years. although the image could are already very easily faked and has the barest of attribution, it does lay out an intriguingly realistic discharge schedule for the potent publisher-developer’s upcoming lineup.
Blizzard merchandise slate leakedIs this Blizzard’s big discharge schedule?
First up on the schedule is Battle.net, the next edition of which introduced earlier this year. based on the schedule, a map industry for the on-line agency will launch in the next quarter of 2011, followed by third-party offerings a la Steam in the earliest quarter of 2012.
Next on the schedule is Starcraft II, the earliest element of which, Wings of Liberty, introduced in July and has previously marketed more than 3 million units. The subsequent installment in the three-part game, the Heart of the Swarm, is apparently founded for any vacation discharge subsequent year, using the third, Legacy of the Void, coming in the earliest quarter of 2013. Curiously, a fourth Starcraft II product, code-named “Phoenix” is also scheduled for any fourth quarter 2011 discharge date–perhaps indicating a two-game pack with Wings of Liberty and Heart of the Swarm is in the offing.
Next up is Diablo III, that will also dispatch in Q4 2011 based on the schedule. The role-playing game–which may be also coming to consoles, based on latest job listings–is slated to possess two expansions: just one in Q2 2013 and also a next in Q4 2014.
Then there’s planet of Warcraft. subsequent subsequent week’s launch of the Cataclysm expansion, the subsequent big thing on the WOW horizon is the game’s Brazilian launch in the 3rd quarter of 2011. The fourth WOW expansion is outlined as arriving in Q2 2012, followed with a manufacturer new WOW buying and selling card online game the subsequent quarter. The schedule also has the planet of Warcraft film debuting in Q4 2012, a date which may slip since director Sam Raimi is apparently directing a Wizard of Oz prequel next.
According to the schedule, a fifth planet of Warcraft expansion is founded for Q3 2013. which is exactly the very same quarter that the secret project–code-named “Titan”–is also founded to launch. small is identified concerning the secret project, but Blizzard is rumored for getting building a massively multiplayer first-person shooter in the vein of Planetside.
The standard story: “As always, we appreciate the curiosity in Blizzard’s present and upcoming games, but we don’t comment on rumors or speculation and we don’t have any new announcements to make.”–Blizzard rep.
Bogus or not bogus?: as well small to go on, but the discharge glass windows jibe using the approximate 18-to-24-month periods between Blizzard games. However, in the online game Developers Conference on-line in October, Battle.net venture director Greg Canessa mentioned that the subsequent Starcraft installment was 18 months away. That time frame makes it due in March or April of 2012, not Q4 2011. With Blizzard not talking, it is unclear if Canessa’s comments are outdated, the schedule is outdated, or even the schedule was produced up out of slim air. However, if a Portuguese-language edition of WOW pops up subsequent twelve months in Brazil, it will lend this schedule some serious credibility.